How hard can it be to buy home owner’s insurance. It’s like, “Please take my money and sell me a damn policy.” No, they have to screw with me.
I went to the Bahamas for a week just to come back and find my Travelers home owner’s insurance canceled. The reason: I don’t have central heat. Like most homes in this area of California I have a natural gas wall heater. It does a great job and this is western California (Gilroy) and it doesn’t get cold here. When I get back with no warning they have me canceled and refunded part of my money I paid. No phone call; nothing.
Now that I’ve been denied coverage it’s now more difficult to get insurance. They created a black mark against me. So I’m creating a black mark against them. Never pick a fight with a blogger who buys data by the terabyte.
These people are real morons and I despise morons. I tried calling them and talking to them about it but that just got me more pissed off. So since I bought it through Geico because I had auto insurance through them I’ll probably go with someone else as well.
I had Farmer’s insurance last year and they were morons too. In fact that’s why I switched companies. I got them while purchasing this house. After paying them and it being too late to change, they demanded that I paint the windows… seemed to be pride of ownership related. I told them that I didn’t yet own the house and that the condition of the paint wasn’t my fault. Besides, I planned to replace the windows as soon as I could after buying it. Not good enough for them. I had to paint the windows anyway and then they charged me an extra fee beyond what we agreed to. So that’s why I dropped them in favor of someone else. Stupid people must be punished, not rewarded.
So, Farmers and Travelers is on my do not buy list. However I am needing to get some insurance and looking to find a company who isn’t a bunch of morons who is willing to just sell me some damn insurance without a lot of crap.
Someone just sent me this link to insurance ratings. Looks like Travelers is not well rated.
I can sympathize. Out of the blue after ten years my home policy was canceled in the Virgin Islands when they claimed I lived in a flood zone. My house is at 500 ft. elevation on a mountainside above the ocean. There are seven switchbacks from sea level to access it. I fought them for weeks showing them photos of the location. The insurer is Lloyds of London…you would thing they would have some smarts. They don’t. I have never put in a claim even after tropical storm damage.
I’m paying over $500.00 per month for $200K worth of coverage. What a racket.
If you call the insurance rep for a claim, the adjuster will have a look around the house looking for problems that violates the contract. Sometimes if they cover the damage, they cancel the damn policy because you have a history of negligence.
I would suggest to them, that this is a Long time thing, it has been in this condition since I started paying you.
I would like ALL my money back, NOT just the bit you wish to giver me.
Welcome to libertarianism… Libertarians would say the company has a perfect right to cancel your policy like this. Proper regulation of the insurance industry would keep this kind of BS from happening.
And why is “proper regulation” required? Because not every poor slob the insurance companies pick fights with is “a blogger who buys data by the terabyte” – those poor slobs are simply screwed.
I’ve found AAA to be very good across the board for insurance. I’m only still with State Farm for my home insurance because they turned out to be cheaper than AAA, and I’ve never had a problem with them. In the 20 years I’ve been insured through State Farm, I’ve never had them contact me about altering any aspect of my home. Frankly, it sounds like both Farmers and Traveler’s (never heard anything good anywhere about Traveler’s) checked your accounting, figured they weren’t making enough money off you, and wanted your account gone.
#4 – Since when are Libertarians the same as Anarchists? Most Libertarians think laws are import – they don’t like murder, theft, crime, etc – including getting ripped off by insurance companies.
I think insurance companies are regulated right now. Would more regulation have helped? The morans at Travellers still have the right to drop Perkel as a client. Should there be a law that says they can’t drop him? Is home insurance a fundamental human right?
It seems to me like Travellers are stupid: they had a happy, paying client and they decided they didn’t want his money. I think if Perkel tells the next insurance company about how he heats his house, they will be happy to sell him a policy with an appropriate premium. I couldn’t say whether it will be higher or lower.
I just switched to Safeco. They have low prices and are highly rated in customer service.
state farm, never had a problem with them that my agent couldn’t handle!
I’ve been with State Farm for over 40 years through 3 different houses and never a problem.
However I worry that they will drop me if I ever file a claim.
What is really behind this case? I’d guess home insurance companies trying to avoid certain risk their computer models or analysts predict.
We have had similar sudden “outage” of home insurance here on Long Island NY after series of strong hurricanes have hit Southern USA in early 2000s. Predictions at the time were that Long Island and NE are due for severe hurricane. Immanently. Hence, suddenly home insurance companies started to drop clients on any excuse. We were dropped due to the “high risk” although since early 1950′s when house was built it never have suffered any damage or insurance claim under any of previous owners.
Since that time we re-insured, at extreme cost through one of the few companies still covering the area. Since that time now and than we receive message from our broker that this or that Ins.Co. is returning to our market. Obviously hurricane haven’t hit…
I don’t know what is “immanent disaster” Travelers predict at Perkel’s location (knowing CA it could be mud slides, fires or earthquakes). But that is the likely real reason. Heating is likely simple excuse allowed in Court in case some silly person tries to challenge the decision (using some loophole in insurance regulation that allows consideration of heating systems for keeping insurance. Same as with programming, no regulation is without its own exploitable bugs.).
Geico – That’s your problem right there!
Just a matter of time until you figure that out for your self.
#4 QUIT using big words..
“libertarianism”
NIXON, cut most of the regulations LONG AGO..
The problem is RIGHTS, and CONTRACTS.
1. they CANT change the contract, after its SIGNED.
2. they cant RAISE the charges without a REASON.
In the USA you can contact the attorney general, or the Insurance regulation board in your state.
Once a contract is signed, they MUST live by it.
BUT, you must know the OUTS they have.
If they bring up something thats WRONG, and drop you..Prove it in court. HAVE fun, and get insured for FREE the rest of your life.
I switched to American Family. I insure my house, 2 cars, boat and jetski with them. Could not be happier. I have my agents cell phone number and she always helps instantly.
I have had State Farm for a long time and never had a reason to complain. We had an arsonist burn down/damage 6 houses in my neighborhood (one incident). The State Farm houses were the first to have claims resolved and be rebuilt.
After Katrina Allstate handled all of our claims in a very reasonable time with no hesitation. Same thing for FEMA.
But the renewed policy I have now from Allstate has so many exemptions for water, wind, hurricane, tropical storm, etc and the deductibles for those acts are so high you are effectively self-insured. A lot of people got dropped.
Insurance underwriting can vary from state to state, you see if you lived in Ohio that would be okay with Travelers insurance. Your agent also has a lot of ability to ask underwriters for exceptions to their underwriting rules so next time something like this happens good year agent first to see what they can do.
A post by Perkel complain about how terrible someone is when they don’t do everything they want him to do? No way!
I have an insurance broker who wrangles with all my insurance co. for me (Home, Car, Boat, etc.) and every time an issue like this has cropped up. He has brought his lawyer in, and the insurance company starts apologizing for it’s mistake. I am not wealthy by any means, but the extra 14% he adds to the total bill for all my insurance is well worth it…has paid for itself over the years. Pays to have legal bulldogs in your corner before the problems in life crop up. Especially since I live in storm country.
I wonder if this is not only Travelers fault, but if there is also some weird California regulation in play as well.
I’m willing to bet that where Perkel lives there is a new regulation where homes will be required to have a “high efficiency” central heating. It reduces carbon emissions and is good for the environment!!
Welcome to Kalifornia!